Methods and apparatus for overlapping MIMO  physical sectors

ABSTRACT

A system is provided comprising a single wireless cell configured to operate in a packet-switched cellular network, the single wireless cell including: a first transmission point with a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; a second transmission point with a MIMO capability; and third circuitry in communication with first circuitry of the first transmission point and second circuitry of the second transmission point. The single wireless cell is configured such that the first transmission point cooperates with the second transmission point in connection with a first transmission to a MIMO-capable portable wireless device, for improving the first transmission. The single wireless cell is further configured for: receiving first information from the first MIMO-capable portable wireless device; receiving second information from the first MIMO-capable portable wireless device; altering at least one aspect of the first transmission; and transmitting data in connection with the first transmission to the first MIMO-capable portable wireless device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority under 35U.S.C. Section 120 from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/476,628 byLastinger filed Sep. 3, 2014, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/348,523 by Lastinger filed Jan. 11, 2012, nowU.S. Pat. No. 8,855,089 which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/118,386 by Lastinger filed May 28, 2011, nowU.S. Pat. No. 8,345,651 which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/709,431 by Lastinger filed Feb. 21, 2007, nowU.S. Pat. No. 8,009,646, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. sctn.119(e) from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/743,376filed Feb. 28, 2006, each of the aforementioned applications is hereinincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention relate to wireless communicationusing Multiple Input Multiple Output (“MIMO”) antennas and methods ofoperation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Wireless devices find uses in a variety of applications for example,providing communication between computers, wireless cells, clients,hand-held devices, mobile devices, and file servers. Wireless deviceswith Multiple Input Multiple Output (“MIMO”) antennas benefit fromspatial diversity and redundant signals. Noise sources may interferewith wireless devices that use MIMO antennas. Wireless communicationusing devices having MIMO antennas may substantially benefit fromselecting a MIMO physical sector and/or a MIMO virtual sector to improveperformance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system is provided comprising a single wireless cell configured tooperate in a packet-switched cellular network, the single wireless cellincluding: a first transmission point with amultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; a second transmissionpoint with a MIMO capability; and third circuitry in communication withfirst circuitry of the first transmission point and second circuitry ofthe second transmission point. The single wireless cell is configuredsuch that the first transmission point cooperates with the secondtransmission point in connection with a first transmission to aMIMO-capable portable wireless device, for improving the firsttransmission. The single wireless cell is further configured for:receiving first information from the first MIMO-capable portablewireless device; receiving second information from the firstMIMO-capable portable wireless device; altering at least one aspect ofthe first transmission; and transmitting data in connection with thefirst transmission to the first MIMO-capable portable wireless device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

Embodiments of the present invention will now be further described withreference to the drawing, wherein like designations denote likeelements, and:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary wireless device according to thevarious aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that form exemplaryMIMO physical sectors;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of exemplary MIMO virtual sectors;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of an exemplary MIMO virtual sector;

FIG. 6 is a diagram of exemplary MIMO virtual sectors;

FIG. 7 is a diagram of exemplary alternate method for diagrammaticallyindicating physical sectors, MIMO physical sectors, and MIMO virtualsectors;

FIG. 8 is a diagram of communication between exemplary wireless devicesin the presence of noise sources;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an exemplary wireless device having three radiosand three antennas for each radio;

FIG. 10 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that form exemplaryMIMO physical sectors;

FIG. 11 is a diagram of an exemplary wireless device having two radiogroups, each group having two radios and two antennas for each radio;

FIG. 12 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that substantiallyoverlap to form exemplary MIMO physical sectors;

FIG. 13 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that partial overlapto form exemplary MIMO virtual sectors;

FIG. 14 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that partial overlapto form exemplary MIMO virtual sectors;

FIG. 15 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that partial overlapto form exemplary MIMO virtual sectors;

FIG. 16 is a diagram of exemplary physical sectors that substantiallyoverlap to form exemplary MIMO physical sectors and exemplary MIMOphysical sectors that partially overlap to form exemplary MIMO physicalsectors;

FIG. 17 is a diagram of communication between exemplary wireless devicesin the presence of noise sources;

FIG. 18 is a diagram of communication between exemplary wireless devicesin the presence of exemplary noise sources;

FIG. 19 is a diagram of a method for forming MIMO physical sectors; and

FIG. 20 is a diagram of a method for forming MIMO physical sectors.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Wireless devices use antennas to transmit and receive radio signals.Noise sources, such as other wireless devices including wireless devicesthat transmit on the same channel, may interfere with wirelesscommunication. Conventional wireless devices use a variety of techniquesto reduce the detrimental effect of noise on communication for example,dividing the area of coverage into sectors, using directional antenna,and using multiple antennas to provide redundancy and spatial diversity.

An improved wireless device, according to the various aspects of thepresent invention includes directional antennas positioned in such a waythat the physical sectors of the antennas of the wireless device overlapand the antennas selected for communication are the antennas whosephysical sectors overlap in an area in a manner that permits theantennas to operate as a Multiple Input Multiple Output (“MIMO”)antenna.

The wireless device, according to the various aspects of the presentinvention may select for communication any suitable combination ofdirectional antennas that operate as a MIMO antenna and are oriented ina desired direction of communication. Furthermore, the wireless devicemay assign any available channel to the antennas to improve performance.

A wireless device, according to the various aspects of the presentinvention includes, for example, wireless cells, access points, wirelessclients, mobile computers, and handheld devices.

The term “physical sector” is understood to mean the area of coverage inwhich an antenna transmits and receives signals. The size and shape of aphysical sector depends on a variety of factors for example, the type ofantenna, atmospheric conditions, presence of noise sources, and physicalsurroundings. Physical sectors 58, 60 and 62 represent thetwo-dimensional shape of idealized physical sectors of directionalantennas. Physical sectors 58, 60 and 62 do not overlap in FIG. 2.Physical sectors 58, 60 and 62 substantially overlap in FIG. 3. Physicalsectors 58, 60 and 62 partially overlap in FIGS. 4 and 5.

The term “MIMO antenna” is understood to mean at least two antennas thateach transmits and/or receives signals on the same channel in the areawhere the physical sectors of the antennas overlap. Antennas may bepositioned in such a way that their physical sectors overlap. Antennaswhose physical sectors overlap in the same area may be configured tooperate as a MIMO antenna in that area. Each individual antenna of aMIMO antenna operates on the same channel (e.g., frequency, encoding, orother method of dividing the radio spectrum for communication). A MIMOantenna provides, inter alia, spatial diversity between the antennas,redundancy, and temporal diversity to reduce the effects of noise ontransmission and reception. Reducing the effects of noise permits awireless device to communicate more reliability.

Antennas that form a MIMO antenna may be oriented to use differentsignal polarization for example, horizontal, vertical, and circular.Antennas that form a MIMO antenna may be physically separated to providespatial diversity.

MIMO physical sectors are formed to provide communication with increasedimmunity to noise within the area of the MIMO physical sector. The term“MIMO physical sector” means the area where the physical sectors of theantennas that operate as a MIMO antenna overlap.

In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 3, physical sectors 58,60, and 62 substantially overlap to form MIMO physical sector 82.Physical sectors 66, 68, and 70 substantially overlap to form a MIMOphysical sector 84. In this embodiment, each MIMO physical sector has anangle of coverage of about 90 degrees. In another embodiment, referringto FIG. 6, each one physical sector 58, 60, and 62 and each one physicalsector 66, 68, and 70 has an angle of coverage of about 180 degrees,thus the resulting MIMO physical sectors 82 and 84 have an angle ofcoverage of about 180 degrees. FIG. 7 represents an alternate method fordiagrammatically representing physical sectors and MIMO physicalsectors. Physical sectors 58-62 respectively have about a 180 degreeangle of coverage and the center of each physical sector is oriented atapproximately 90 degrees (straight up on the page). Each physical sector58-62 extends from wireless device 10 to the furthest extent reached bythe respective antennas even though FIG. 7 shows gaps between thephysical sectors for clarity. The MIMO physical sectors 82 and 84 ofFIGS. 6 and 7 are equivalent; however, the diagrammatical representationof FIG. 7 provides greater clarity. Thus, MIMO physical sectors 82 and84 respectively include three substantially overlapping physical sectors58-62 and 66-70.

The physical sectors of the antennas that form a MIMO antenna are notlimited to being substantially overlapping. When physical sectors onlypartially overlap, the MIMO physical sector is the area where thephysical sectors of the antennas that form the MIMO antenna overlap.Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the antennas associated with physicalsectors 58-62 transmit and receive using the same channel. Area 94 isthe area where physical sectors 58, 60, and 62 overlap, thus area 94 isa MIMO physical sector. The antennas associated with physical sectors58-62 operate as a MIMO antenna in area 94. The MIMO physical sectorformed by physical sectors 66-70 is also shown in FIG. 4 as MIMOphysical sector 82.

MIMO physical sectors may be formed in a variety of ways. In oneexemplary method for forming a MIMO physical sector, referring to FIG.19, antennas are selected to operate as a MIMO antenna then the antennasare positioned in such a way that the physical sectors of the antennasoverlap. In another exemplary method for forming a MIMO physical sector,referring to FIG. 20, a plurality of antennas are positioned in such away that the physical sectors of at least some of the antennas at leastpartially overlap then at least two antennas are selected to operate asa MIMO antenna in the area where their physical sectors overlap to forma MIMO physical sector. The plurality of antennas may be positioned insuch a way that the various MIMO physical sectors that are formed areoriented in different directions. At least two antennas may be selectedto operate as a MIMO antenna in accordance with the orientation of theMIMO physical sector formed by the physical sectors of the selectedantennas. The orientation of some MIMO physical sectors may provideincreased performance over the orientation of other MIMO physicalsectors. Furthermore, the antennas that form the MIMO antenna may beassigned any available channel. Accordingly, the selected antennas, thusthe MIMO physical sector, may be assigned to a channel that providesimproved performance.

The term “MIMO virtual sector” means the area where the physical sectorsof antennas that may operate as a MIMO antenna overlap. Referring toFIG. 13, physical sectors 58-62 and 66-70 each have an angle of coverageof about 180 degrees respectively. The antennas associated with physicalsectors 58-62 and 66-70 are positioned in such a way that in area 150,physical sectors 58, 68, and 70 overlap. In area 152, physical sectors58, 60, and 70 overlap and so forth for areas 154-160. Each one area150-160 comprises a MIMO virtual sector because the antennas whosephysical sectors overlap in the area may operate as a MIMO antenna. Ifthe antennas associated with physical sectors 58, 68, and 70 areselected to form a MIMO antenna, then area 150 operates as a MIMOphysical sector. If the antennas associated with physical sectors 58,60, and 70 are selected to form a MIMO antenna, then area 152 operatesas a MIMO physical sector and so forth for the other areas. Beforeantennas are selected to form a MIMO physical sector, areas 150-160 areMIMO virtual sectors. When antennas are selected to form a MIMO antenna,the area where the physical sectors of the selected antennas overlapbecome a MIMO physical sector while the other areas remain MIMO virtualsectors. A MIMO physical sector may also be referred to as a selectedMIMO virtual sector or an active MIMO virtual sector. Any criteria maybe used to select a MIMO virtual sector for communication.

The method of positioning antennas to form MIMO virtual sectors thenselecting antennas to operate as a MIMO antenna permits the wirelessdevice to respond to changes in, inter alia, performance, noise sources,and the environment by communicating through the MIMO physical sectorthat provides increased performance.

Positioning antennas to form MIMO virtual sectors permits a wirelessdevice with fixed antenna positions to select from a variety of MIMOvirtual sectors to communicate using the MIMO physical sector thatprovides a desired level of performance. When the performance of theselected MIMO physical sector deteriorates due to, inter alia, noisesources or environmental conditions, the wireless device can selectdifferent antennas to operate as a MIMO antenna, thereby selecting adifferent MIMO virtual sector to operate as a MIMO physical sector wherethe different MIMO physical sector provides increased performance.

MIMO physical sectors permits a wireless device to communicate withincreased performance. MIMO virtual sectors permits a wireless device toselect an area to transmit and receive in accordance with the MIMOvirtual sector that provides a desired level of performance. A wirelessdevice having multiple MIMO virtual sectors may select between thevarious MIMO virtual sectors. A wireless device may select the MIMOvirtual sector that provides an increased level of performance.Positioning the antennas of a wireless device to form MIMO virtualsectors that are oriented in different directions permits the wirelessdevice to select a MIMO physical sector based on the orientation of thevirtual sector with relation to the position of noise sources.

Performance may be measure by, inter alia, throughput, data throughput,signal-to-noise ratio, reduced signal error, reduced data errors,reduced retransmission requests, reduced interference, rejection ofmultipath signals, higher transmission rates, and signal strength.

A MIMO system includes radios and antennas that may be configured toform MIMO antennas, MIMO physical sectors, and MIMO virtual sectors. AMIMO system may form a MIMO antenna using any suitable combination ofradios and antennas. A MIMO system may select any suitable MIMO physicalsector for communication. A MIMO system may have any suitable number ofMIMO virtual sectors and/or selected MIMO virtual sectors. The MIMOsystem may position its MIMO physical sectors at any orientation. TheMIMO physical sectors of a MIMO system may overlap other MIMO physicalsectors of the same MIMO system. Overlapping MIMO physical sectors ofthe same MIMO system may be assigned different channels.

A MIMO system has at least two radios and at least two antennas where atleast two radios and two antennas form a MIMO antenna. In anotherexemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 1, a MIMO system has threeradios with two antennas interfacing with each one radio. Threeantennas, one antenna from each radio, may operate as a MIMO antenna,thereby resulting in a MIMO system having two MIMO antennas.

The present invention may employ various types of radios using any typeof communication protocol and operating at any frequency and/or with anynumber of channels suitable for the application. The present inventionmay use any variety of antennas or groups of antennas for any purposefor example, transmission, reception, noise reduction, and multipathdetection. Antennas may be positioned in any manner for example, theirphysical sectors may be overlapping and non-overlapping. Radios andantennas may operate as a MIMO system, MIMO antennas, MIMO physicalsectors, and MIMO virtual sectors. Any type of algorithm and/orprocessor may be used to enable radios and/or antennas to form andoperate as MIMO antennas. Antennas may be selected for communicationaccording to any criteria such as for example, data throughput, signalstrength, signal quality, and signal-to-noise ratio.

In one embodiment, the antennas of the wireless device are positioned toform non-overlapping MIMO physical sectors and one of thenon-overlapping MIMO physical sectors is selected for communication withother wireless devices. In another embodiment, the antennas of thewireless device are positioned to form overlapping MIMO virtual sectorsand some of the MIMO virtual sectors are selected for communication withother wireless devices.

The antennas that form a MIMO antenna may be used in any manner totransmit and/or receive signals for example, any number of antennas thatoperate as the MIMO antenna may transmit only, receive only, andtransmit and receive signals.

In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 1, antennas 34, 36, and38, with their associated radios, form a MIMO antenna in which eachantenna 34, 36, and 38 transmits and receives the same signals. Inanother embodiment, antennas 34-38 form a MIMO antenna in which antenna34 transmits, antenna 36 receives only, and antenna 38 transmits andreceives. Different MIMO antenna configurations may provide differentcommunication characteristics. For example, a configuration where allantennas of the MIMO antenna transmit and receive the same informationmay provide increased error correction. A configuration where antennastransmit and/or receive different information may provide increased datathroughput. In an configuration where each antenna of the MIMO antennareceives some version of the same signal, the information content of thevarious signal versions received by the antennas of the MIMO antenna maybe highly similar and/or less similar depending on environmentalconditions for example, the presence of noise sources, multipathreflections, and spatial diversity of the antennas. Advanced algorithmsmay be used to process the signal received by each antenna that form theMIMO antenna to construct a resultant receive signal that contains asmuch of the receive signal information as can be extracted. The antennasof a MIMO antenna may be configured to receive signals from a commonsource by positioning the antennas such that their physical sectorsoverlap.

The number of antennas used to form a MIMO physical sector and theoverlap of the physical sectors of the antennas may affect performance.For example, referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, area 90 receives coverage fromonly physical sector 62, thus communications within area 90 aretransmitted and received by only antenna 38. Likewise, area 98 receivescoverage only from physical sector 60 and antenna 36. Even when antennas36 and 38 are selected to operate as a MIMO antennas, areas 90 and 98are not MIMO physical sectors because only one antenna operates in thearea. When only one antenna of the antennas selected to operate as aMIMO antenna transmits and receives in an area, the performance may notbe as high as in the areas where the physical sectors of the antennasoverlap to form a MIMO physical sector. Areas 92 and 96 receive coveragefrom physical sectors 58, 62 and 58, 60 respectively. Areas 92 and 96are MIMO physical sectors because at least two antennas operate as aMIMO antenna in the areas. Communication using at least two antennas ofthe antennas selected to operate as a MIMO antenna may improveperformance. Area 94, a MIMO physical sector formed by the overlap ofthe physical sectors of three antennas, receives coverage from physicalsectors 58, 60 and 62 and their related antennas 34-38. Antennas 34-38operate as a MIMO antenna, thus reception and/or transmission throughall three antennas in area 94 may provide higher performance thanreception and/or transmission through areas 90-92 and 96-98. The MIMOphysical sector in area 94 is most likely to provide improvedperformance because all antennas of the MIMO antenna communicate in area94.

MIMO physical sectors formed using directional antennas may useconventional antenna select methods to reduce interference from noisesources. For example, referring to FIGS. 1 and 8, wireless device 10comprises processor 12, radios 18-22, RF switches 26-30, and antennas34-38 and 42-46 where two antennas interfacing with each one RF switchrespectively. Antennas 34-38 and 42-46 operate as a first MIMO antennaand a second MIMO antenna respectively. Radios 18-22 use the802.11a/b/g/n communication protocols. Antenna physical sectors 58-62,associated with antennas 34-38 respectively, substantially overlap toform MIMO physical sector 82. Antenna physical sectors 66-70, associatedwith antennas 42-46 respectively, substantially overlap to form MIMOphysical sector 84. In this embodiment, each radio is set to the samechannel. The physical sectors and the MIMO physical sectors 82-84 extendfarther than shown in FIG. 8 to enable wireless device 10 to communicatewith wireless device 102 and receive interference from noise sources 106and 108. Wireless device 10 uses RF switches 26-30 to select betweenantennas 34-38 and 42-46. In this embodiment, the RF switches selectbetween one of two groups of antennas; either antennas 34-38 or antennas42-46 are selected, thus only one MIMO physical sector, either 82 or 84,is active at any given time. In the embodiment and the scenariodescribed in FIG. 8, wireless device 10 selects MIMO antennas physicalsector 84 to reduce interference from noise sources 106 and 108 whilecommunicating with wireless device 102. Wireless device 104 of FIG. 8may also be implemented using MIMO physical sectors similar to those ofwireless device 10. Wireless device 104 may select the MIMO physicalsector that provides the best performance while communicating withwireless device 102 and reduces interference from noise source 110.

In another embodiment of a MIMO system, referring to FIG. 9, wirelessdevice 10 comprises a processor 12, three radios 18-22, three RFswitches 26-30, and three antennas interfacing with each RF switch.Antennas 34-38, 42-46, and 50-54 may have any angle of coverage, beoriented in any direction, form MIMO antennas, and form MIMO virtualsectors in any manner. In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 10,each antenna 34-38, 42-46, and 50-54 has an angle of coverage of about120 degrees. Antennas 34-38 are oriented so that their associatedphysical sectors, 58-62 respectively, substantially overlap to form MIMOphysical sector 82. Antennas 42-46 are oriented so that their associatedphysical sectors, 66-70 respectively, substantially overlap to form MIMOphysical sector 84. Antennas 50-54 are oriented so that their associatedphysical sectors, 74-78 respectively, substantially overlap to form MIMOphysical sector 86. Physical sectors 58-62, 66-70, and 74-78 areoriented such that the center of MIMO physical sectors 82, 84, and 86are respectively oriented at about 60, 180, and 300 degreesrespectively. In this embodiment, the MIMO physical sectors do notsubstantial overlap. Each radio is set to the same channel, thus theMIMO physical sectors 82-86 each use the same channel. The wirelessdevice embodiment of FIGS. 9 and 10 may also be used to reduceinterference with noise sources by selected one of the three MIMOphysical sectors for communication.

In another embodiment, not shown, wireless device 10 comprises aprocessor, four radios, an RF switch interfacing with each one radio,and four directional antennas interfacing with each one RF switch. Eachantenna has an angle of coverage of about 90 degrees. The physicalsectors of one antenna from each RF switch substantially overlap to forma MIMO physical sector resulting in a MIMO system having four MIMOvirtual sectors. Each MIMO physical sector receives coverage from eachone of the four radios. The physical sectors of the antennas areoriented in such a way that the MIMO physical sectors do not overlap andthe MIMO physical sectors provide a combined angle of coverage of about360 degrees. All radios are set to the same channel.

In another embodiment, not shown, wireless device 10 comprises aprocessor, two radios interfacing with the processor, an RF switchinterfacing with each one of the radios, and three directional antennasinterfacing with each one RF switch. Each antenna has an angle ofcoverage of about 120 degrees. The physical sectors of one antenna fromeach one RF switch substantially overlap to form a MIMO physical sectorresulting in a MIMO system having three MIMO virtual sectors. Each MIMOphysical sector receives coverage from each one of the two radios. Thephysical sectors of the antenna are oriented in such a way that the MIMOphysical sectors do not overlap and the MIMO physical sectors provide acombined angle of coverage of about 360 degrees. All radios are set tothe same channel.

In another embodiment, not shown, wireless device 10 comprises aprocessor, two radios interfacing with the processor, an RF switchinterfacing with each one of the radios, and “N” directional antennasinterfacing with each one RF switch. Each antenna has an angle ofcoverage of about 360 degrees divided by N. Two antennas, one from eachRF switch, form a MIMO antenna, thereby forming N MIMO antennas. Thephysical sectors of the antennas that form each MIMO antennasubstantially overlap to form N MIMO physical sectors. The MIMO physicalsectors are oriented in such a way that the MIMO physical sectors do notsubstantially overlap, thereby providing a combined angle of coverage ofabout 360 degrees. All radios are set to the same channel.

Radios, antennas, and MIMO physical sectors are not limited to using asingle channel for communication or to forming MIMO physical sectorsthat are substantially non-overlapping. Radios may be grouped to provideMIMO physical sectors that use different channels. MIMO physical sectorsthat communicate on different channels may be positioned to overlap.Overlapping MIMO physical sectors that use different channels maysimultaneously communicate less mutual interference.

In one embodiment, referring to FIG. 11, wireless device 10 comprises aprocess 12, controllers 14, 16 interfaces with processor 10, two radios18, 20 interface with controller 14 thereby forming a first radio group,two radios 22, 24 interface with controller 16 thereby forming a secondradio group, an RF switch 26, 28, 30, 32 interfaces with radio 18, 20,22, 24 respectively, antennas 34-48 interface with the RF switches insuch a manner that two antennas interface with each one RF switch. Theantennas may form MIMO antennas any manner; however, forming MIMOantennas using antennas from the same group enables MIMO physicalsectors from different groups to operate on different channels.

In one embodiment, antennas 34 and 36 form a first MIMO antenna.Antennas 42 and 44 form a second MIMO antenna. The first and second MIMOantennas belong to the first radio group. Antennas 38 and 40 form athird MIMO antenna. Antennas 46 and 48 form a fourth MIMO antenna. Thethird and fourth MIMO antennas belong to the second radio group. Inanother embodiment, antennas 34-40 form a first MIMO antenna andantennas 42-48 form a second MIMO antenna.

The antennas and their respective physical sectors may have any angle ofcoverage and be oriented in any direction. The antennas of the variousgroups may form MIMO antennas in any manner. The resulting MIMO physicalsectors may be overlapping or non-overlapping. In an exemplaryembodiment, antennas 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, and 48 and theirrespective physical sectors 58, 60, 62, 64, 66, 68, 70, and 72 each havean angle of coverage of about 180 degrees. Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12,physical sector 58 substantially overlaps physical sector 60 to formMIMO physical sector 82. Physical sectors 62 and 64 substantiallyoverlap, 66 and 68 substantially overlap, and 70 and 72 substantiallyoverlap to form MIMO physical sectors 84, 86, and 88 respectively. Thecenter of the angles of coverage of antennas 34, 36 and 38, 40 areoriented at about 90 degrees (e.g., up the page), thus MIMO physicalsectors 82 and 84 overlap. The center of the angles of coverage ofantennas 42, 44 and 46, 48 are oriented at about 270 degrees (e.g., downthe page), thus MIMO physical sectors 86 and 88 substantially overlap.Radios 18 and 20 belong to the first radio group and radios 22 and 24belong to the second radio group. Assigning channel C1 to the firstradio group and channel C2 to the second radio group results in MIMOphysical sectors 82 and 86 using channel C1 and MIMO physical sectors 84and 88 using channel C2. Thus, the channel assignment, the antennaorientation, and the MIMO antenna configurations provide overlappingMIMO physical sectors that use different channels. Referring to FIG. 12,MIMO physical sector 82 is assigned to C1, MIMO physical sector 84 isassigned to C2, and MIMO physical sector 82 substantially overlaps MIMOphysical sector 84. Because MIMO physical sectors 82 and 84 are assigneddifferent channels, they may communicate with different wireless devicessimultaneously with less mutual interference. MIMO physical sectorsformed using antennas from different radio groups enables the MIMOphysical sectors to overlap, be assigned different channels, andcommunicate simultaneously. MIMO antennas of the same radio group usethe same channel. Interference between MIMO physical sectors formedusing antennas from the same group may be reduced by, for example,positioning the MIMO physical sectors in such a way that they do notoverlap and communicating using only one MIMO physical sector from thesame group at any one time.

In another embodiment, referring to FIG. 11, each one antenna 34-48 hasa physical sector with an angle of coverage of about 90 degrees.Antennas are organized, as described above, to form four MIMO antennas.Antenna physical sectors are positioned such that the center of theangle of coverage for antennas pairs 34 and 36, 38 and 40, 42 and 44,and 46 and 48 and their respective physical sectors are oriented at 45,135, 225, and 315 degrees respectively. Channel C1 is assigned to thefirst group radios and channel C2 is assigned to the second groupradios. The resulting four MIMO physical sectors are positioned to notsubstantially overlap and adjacent MIMO physical sectors are assigned adifferent channel. One MIMO physical sector from the first radio groupand one MIMO physical sector from the second radio group may operatesimultaneously.

The antennas of wireless device 10 may be oriented to form MIMO virtualsectors. MIMO virtual sectors may have any angle of coverage and beoriented in any manner. A MIMO virtual sector may be selected forcommunication to decrease interference. In one embodiment, referring toFIGS. 1 and 13, antennas 34-38 and 42-46 have an angle of coverage ofabout 180 degrees. Antennas 34, 36, 38, 42, 44, 46 and the center of theangle of coverage of their respective physical sectors 58, 60, 62, 66,68, 70 are oriented at 90, 150, 210, 270, 300, and 30 degreesrespectively. The area between 0 and 60 degrees, marked as area 150 inFIG. 13, is covered by physical sectors 58, 68, and 70. Antennas 34, 44,and 46 may function together as a MIMO antenna to transmit signals toand receive signals from any wireless device within area 150. Areas 152,154, 156, 158, and 160 are respectively positioned between about 60-120degrees, about 120-180 degrees, about 180-240 degrees, about 240-300degrees, and about 300-0 degrees and are serviced respectively byantennas 34, 36, and 46; 34, 36 and 38; 42, 36 and 38; 42, 44 and 38;and 42, 44 and 46. Each one area 150-160 comprises a MIMO virtualsector.

In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIGS. 1 and 13, area 150operates as a MIMO physical sector by forming a MIMO antenna usingantennas 34, 44, and 46. Area 152 operates as a MIMO physical sector byforming a MIMO antenna using antennas 34, 36, and 46, and so forth forareas 154-160. In this embodiment, areas 158 and 160 may not be combinedto operate as a MIMO physical sector because area 158 requires antennas42, 44, and 38 to form a MIMO antenna while area 160 requires antennas42, 44, and 46 to form a MIMO antenna. Because RF switch 30 selects onlyone antenna at a time, MIMO physical sectors, for this embodiment, arelimited to any combination of any one antenna associated with each RFswitch. In this embodiment, wireless device 10 may select andcommunicate through any one MIMO virtual sector at any given time. Themethod of selecting the MIMO virtual sector consists of setting the RFswitches to select the antennas that service the desired MIMO virtualsector. In another embodiment, an RF switch with its associated antennasmay be replaced by a phased array. Antenna elements of each phased arraymay form MIMO antennas.

Antennas may be oriented in any manner to form MIMO virtual sectors ofany size. In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 13, each MIMOvirtual sector 150-160 has an angle of coverage of about 60 degrees. Inanother embodiment, referring to FIG. 14, MIMO virtual sectors 150, 152,154, 156, 158, and 160 lie between 0-30 degrees, 30-60 degrees, 60-180degrees, 180-210 degrees, 210-240 degrees, and 240-0 degreesrespectively. In another embodiment, referring to FIG. 15, each MIMOvirtual sector has an angle of coverage of about 40 degrees. MIMOvirtual sectors 150-166 lie between 0-40 degrees, 40-80 degrees, 80-120degrees, 120-160 degrees, 160-200 degrees, 200-240 degrees, 240-280degrees, 280-320 degrees, and 320-0 degrees respectively. In anotherembodiment, referring to FIGS. 11 and 18, each MIMO virtual sector hasan angle of coverage of about 90 degrees. Channel C1 is assigned to thefirst group radios and channel C2 is assigned to the second groupradios. Antenna pairs 34 and 36, 38 and 40, 42 and 44, and 46 and 48respectively form MIMO antennas. MIMO virtual sectors formed by antennas34, 36 and 42, 44 extend from 0-180 and 180-0 degrees respectively andare assigned channel C1. MIMO virtual sectors formed by antennas 38, 40and 46, 48 extend from 90-270 and 270-90 degrees respectively and areassigned channel C2. The MIMO virtual sectors are positioned to formareas 150-156 which each receive coverage from two MIMO virtual sectorsthat operate on different channels.

A wireless device may select and communicate through a MIMO virtualsector to improve performance. A wireless device may use any criteriafor selecting a MIMO virtual sector for communication such as, forexample, the presence of noise sources, noise source channels used,signal-to-strength ratio, direction of primary data flow, signalquality, signal strength, and data throughput.

In one embodiment, referring to FIGS. 9 and 17, wireless device 10desires to communicate with wireless device 102. Wireless device 10successively enables each antenna combination that forms each MIMOvirtual sector 150-160. Through each MIMO virtual sector, wirelessdevice 10 measures its ability to communicate with wireless device 102.Through at least MIMO virtual sector 150, wireless device 10 detects thepresence of noise source 110. Through at least MIMO virtual sectors 154and 156, wireless device 10 detects the presence of noise sources 106and 108 respectively. While communicating with wireless device 102,wireless device 10 may reduce interference from noise sources 106 and108 by selecting and communicating through MIMO virtual sector 150. Inthe embodiment of wireless device 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 17, areasadjacent to the selected MIMO virtual sector have at least one antennain common, thus selecting a MIMO virtual sector does not disable allcommunication in other sectors, but communication within the selectedMIMO virtual sector may provide increased performance than adjacentareas because it transmits and/or receives using all the antennas thatform the MIMO antenna.

Referring still to FIGS. 1 and 17, wireless device 10 may reduceinterference from noise source 110 by selecting a channel that isdifferent from the channel used by noise source 110. In the event thatwireless device 102 cannot switch to a channel that is not used by noisesource 110, communication with wireless device 102 may proceed usingMIMO virtual sector 150 if it provides a desired level of performance. Awireless device may select any MIMO virtual sector that provides adesired level of performance. In this embodiment, wireless device 10 mayselect MIMO virtual sector 152 to communicate with wireless device 102.Wireless device 10 may detect less interference from noise source 110through MIMO virtual sector 152 than it detects through MIMO virtualsector 150, but wireless device 10 may also receive a less desirablesignal from wireless cell 102. In the event that wireless device 10desires to communicate with wireless device 104 and noise sources 106,108, and 110 all operate on the same channel as wireless device 104,wireless cell 10 may reduce interference from the noise sources byselecting MIMO virtual sector 160 for communicating with wireless device104. A wireless device may select and use any MIMO virtual sector forany duration of time. A wireless device may switch from using one MIMOvirtual sector to using any other MIMO virtual sector at any time andfor any purpose. In an exemplary embodiment, referring to FIG. 17,wireless device 10 switches between MIMO virtual sectors 150 and 160 tocommunicate with wireless devices 102 and 104 respectively.Additionally, a wireless device may transmit through one MIMO virtualsector and receive through a different MIMO virtual sector. In anotherembodiment, referring to FIGS. 11 and 18, wireless device 10 may selectthe MIMO virtual sector that provides a desired level of communicationfor each area. Additionally, wireless device 10 may communicate with twowireless devices 104 and 120, both in area 156, simultaneously ondifferent channels; for example, wireless device 104 communicates usingchannel C1 while wireless device 120 communicates using channel C2.

Unless contrary to physical possibility, the inventor envisions themethods and systems described herein: (i) may be performed in anysequence and/or combination; and (ii) the components of respectiveembodiments combined in any manner.

This application incorporates by reference U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 60/484,800 filed on Jul. 3, 2003; U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 60/493,663 filed on Aug. 8, 2003; U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 60/692,490 filed on Jun. 21, 2005; U.S. utility applicationSer. No. 10/869,201 filed on Jun. 15, 2004 and issued under U.S. Pat.No. 7,302,278; and U.S. utility application Ser. No. 10/880,387 filed onJun. 29, 2004 and issued under U.S. Pat. No. 7,359,675, in theirentirety for the teachings taught therein.

The wireless cell can ask the advanced client to measure and reportcommunication statistics such as, but not limited to, bit error rate,signal-to-noise ratio, dropped bits, signal strength, number ofretransmission requests or any other environmental or communicationparameter. Each antenna and antenna controller functions independentlyof the other antennas and controllers.

The antenna controller sets the beam width, beam azimuth, beam steering,gain of the antenna and any other parameter available on adjustableantennas. The antennas are also capable of high-speed switching. Thecontrollable characteristics of the antenna are dynamically modifiable.The antenna beam can steer directly at one receiving client duringtransmission then pointed at a second client when transmission to thesecond client begins. The beam width of the antenna can be increased ordecreased as necessary; however, it is preferable to not increase thebeam width to provide antenna coverage beyond the width of a sector. Ifthe beam width is adjusted to provide coverage wider than a sector, theradio signal may interfere with adjacent or opposing sectors or wirelesscells or detect clients not associated with the sector or wireless cell.The processor is responsible for tracking the antenna characteristicsbest suited to service each client in the sector covered by the antennaand to set the antenna controller to the parameters best suite for theparticular client when communicating with the client. The use of anadjustable antenna, an antenna controller and a processor capable ofcontrolling the antenna controller is not limited to the six-sectorembodiment of a wireless network, but can also be used in a four-sectorwireless cell or other wireless cell types. Preferably, the beam widthwould not exceed the width of the sector of the wireless cell in whichit is used.

MIMO antennas may use any combination of spatial, polarization, or angleantenna diversity. The MIMO antenna array may be fixed or adaptive foreither transmit, receive, or both. When receiving, the MIMO antenna mayuse, for example, a maximum ratio combiner, an optimal linear combiner,selection diversity, or any combination of these methods or othermethods for combining the signals from multiple antennas into a singlesignal. When transmitting, the MIMO antenna may use any type of encodingincluding, for example, OFDM, space-time-codes, or weighting of theantenna signals in the array to accomplish beam steering.

During transmission or reception, all or any subset of antennas in theMIMO array may be used or selection diversity may be used to limit thenumber of antennas used.

Antenna diversity may be used in the transmit path, in the receive path,or in both transmit and receive paths. The signal from each antenna,transmitted or received, may or may not be weighted.

Servicing a physical sector with a MIMO antenna means that all antennasin the MIMO array use the channel assigned to the physical sector.Signal attenuation may be added after each antenna, after the signalcombiner, or in the signal processor that manipulates the incomingsignals.

Although MIMO antennas are arrays of antennas, any antenna array may beused as a single antenna or a MIMO antenna may be used. For example, adirectional antenna with about 120-degree angle of coverage may bereplaced by an antenna array that provides similar coverage. The arraymay be fixed or adaptive. Adaptive arrays may use adaptive array weightsto transmit directional beams within the angle and area of coverage tosend a stronger signal to a desired client. During reception, anadaptive array may use array weights to direct a beam substantiallytowards the transmitting client and substantially null out any sourcesof interference.

The processor, in exemplary embodiments, in addition to getting receivedata from and sending transmit data to the radios, may also sendinstructions to control the radios such as, for example, instructing aradio to change channels or getting control information from the radios.In exemplary embodiments, the processor may also be capable of, forexample, varying attenuation, controlling any or all RF switches,maintaining route tables, maintaining client specific information, andhanding off mobile clients.

In an exemplary embodiment, the processor may also control, for example,the attenuation or RF switches on a transmit or receive basis, a perclient basis, a fixed period basis, and on a per demand basis.

Some embodiments may have a network connection that may enable thewireless cell to communicate with a wired network. Some embodiments mayhave local storage to store, for example, transmit and receive date,relay data, video or audio data, environmental conditions data, and anyother type of data required to service clients, function as a network,handoff or receive mobile clients, and forward information.

When receiving, the MIMO antenna may use, for example, a maximum ratiocombiner, an optimal linear combiner, selection diversity, or anycombination of these methods or other methods for combining the signalsfrom multiple antennas into a single signal.

Assume for this example that the communication protocol uses packetizeddata and that the clients must transmit RTS and await a CTS beforetransmitting a single packet. It is possible to switch a client, ormultiple clients, from a packet based communication protocol to a datastream protocol to increase the efficiency of long data transfersbetween clients.

Another aspect of the invention is the use of multiple directionalantennas, at least one radio, at least one attenuator and otherelectronic devices such as RF switches, packet switches, antenna sharingdevices and other electronic and electrical components to generatevarious embodiments of wireless cells and wireless networks withdiffering characteristics and capabilities.

Although there have been described preferred embodiments of this novelinvention, many variations and modifications are possible and theembodiments described herein are not limited by the specific disclosureabove, but rather should be limited only by the scope of the appendedclaims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a single wirelessstation configured to operate in a packet-switched cellular network, thesingle wireless station including: a first transmission point with amultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, the first transmissionpoint having: a plurality of first directional antennas, at least onefirst radio in communication with the first directional antennas, andfirst circuitry in communication with the at least one first radio; asecond transmission point with a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability, the second transmission point having: a plurality of seconddirectional antennas, at least one second radio in communication withthe second directional antennas, and second circuitry in communicationwith the at least one second radio; and third circuitry in communicationwith the first circuitry of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability and the secondcircuitry of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; said single wirelessstation configured such that the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability cooperates with thesecond transmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability in connection with a first transmission to a firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,for improving the first transmission; said single wireless stationconfigured for: receiving first information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on a measurement performed by the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device;receiving second information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on another measurement performed by the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device;altering at least one aspect of the first transmission in connectionwith at least one of: multiple of the first directional antennas of thefirst transmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability, or multiple of the second directional antennas of the secondtransmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability, based on the first information and the second information;and transmitting data in connection with the first transmission to thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice, utilizing at least one of: the multiple first directionalantennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 2. The system of claim1, wherein the system is configured such that the first directionalantennas and the second directional antennas includemultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antennas.
 3. The system of claim1, wherein the system is configured such that the first information isidentified by enabling at least one of the first directional antennas ofthe first transmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO) capability, and measuring an ability of the at least one firstdirectional antenna of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability to communicate with thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured suchthat at least one of the first information or the second information isa function of at least one of: a data throughput, a signal-to-noiseratio, a reduced signal error, a reduced data error, a reducedretransmission request, a reduced interference, a rejection of multipathsignal, a higher transmission rate, or a signal strength, in connectionwith the first multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portablewireless device.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the system isconfigured such that the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability and the secondtransmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability are capable of communicating with the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless deviceutilizing the same channel with at least one different channelcharacteristic.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the system isconfigured such that the at least one different channel characteristicincludes at least one of: a channel characteristic that isthroughput-related, a channel characteristic that is signal-to-noiseratio-related, a channel characteristic that is signal strength-related,or a channel characteristic that is multipath signal-related, inconnection with the same channel.
 7. The system of claim 5, wherein thesystem is configured such that the at least one different channelcharacteristic includes at least two of: a channel characteristicrelated to a throughput-related aspect, a channel characteristic relatedto a signal-to-noise ratio-related aspect, a channel characteristicrelated to a signal strength-related aspect, and a channelcharacteristic related to a multipath signal-related aspect, inconnection with the same channel.
 8. The system of claim 5, wherein thesystem is configured such that the at least one different channelcharacteristic includes at least three of: a channel characteristic thatis throughput-related, a channel characteristic that is signal-to-noiseratio-related, a channel characteristic that is signal strength-related,and a channel characteristic that is multipath signal-related, inconnection with the same channel.
 9. The system of claim 5, wherein thesystem is configured such that the at least one different channelcharacteristic includes at least four of: a channel characteristicrelated to a throughput-related aspect, a channel characteristic relatedto a signal-to-noise ratio-related aspect, a channel characteristicrelated to a signal strength-related aspect, and a channelcharacteristic related to a multipath signal-related aspect, inconnection with the same channel.
 10. The system of claim 1, wherein thesystem is configured such that the altering the at least one aspectincludes selecting both the multiple first directional antennas of thefirst transmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability and the multiple second directional antennas of the secondtransmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability in connection with the first transmission to the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,and the same data is transmitted in connection with the firsttransmission to the first multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capableportable wireless device via a same channel, utilizing both the multiplefirst directional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability and the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 11. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the system is configured such that the altering the atleast one aspect includes selecting only one of: the multiple firstdirectional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability in connection with thefirst transmission to the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device, and the data is transmitted inconnection with the first transmission to the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,utilizing only the selected one of: the multiple first directionalantennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 12. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the system is configured such that coordination isperformed for selectively directing a beam associated with the firsttransmission to improve the transmission of the data by overcominginterference.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein the system isconfigured such that the altering the at least one aspect includesaltering beamforming in connection with at least one of: the multiplefirst directional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability in connection with thefirst transmission to the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device, and the data is transmitted inconnection with the first transmission to the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,utilizing the beamforming in connection with the at least one of: themultiple first directional antennas of the first transmission point withthe multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiplesecond directional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 14. The system ofclaim 13, wherein the system is configured such that the beamforminginvolves weighting and the altering is performed to improve the firsttransmission independent of a handoff.
 15. The system of claim 1,wherein at least one of: said first directional antennas aremultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antennas; said second directionalantennas are multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antennas; said firstdirectional antennas and the second directional antennas reduce theeffects of noise on transmission and reception; said first directionalantennas exhibit temporal diversity; said second directional antennasexhibit temporal diversity; said first transmission point includes afirst portion and the second transmission point includes a secondportion; said first transmission point includes a first part and thesecond transmission point includes a second part; said firsttransmission point includes a first group and the second transmissionpoint includes a second group; said at least one first radio is incommunication with the first directional antennas via at least oneswitch; said at least one first radio is in communication with the firstdirectional antennas via at least one phased array; said at least onefirst radio includes a single radio that is in communication with theplurality of first directional antennas; said at least one second radiois in communication with the second directional antennas via at leastone switch; said at least one second radio is in communication with thesecond directional antennas via at least one phased array; said at leastone second radio includes a single radio that is in communication withthe plurality of second directional antennas; said first circuitryincludes at least one controller; said second circuitry includes atleast one controller; said third circuitry includes at least oneprocessor; said single wireless station includes a single wireless cell;said single wireless station includes at least one wireless cell; saidaltering is performed by the third circuitry; said altering includesselecting both the multiple first directional antennas of the firsttransmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability and the multiple second directional antennas of the secondtransmission point with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability; said altering the at least one aspect includes altering theat least one aspect in connection with only the multiple firstdirectional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; said transmitting thedata in connection with the first transmission to the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless deviceincludes transmitting the data utilizing the multiple first directionalantennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; said first directionalantennas and the second directional antennas have associated therewith amultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) virtual sector including an areawhere a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) physical sector is tooperate; said first directional antennas and the second directionalantennas form multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) virtual sectors thatare capable of being selected to provide multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO) physical sectors; said first directional antennas and the seconddirectional antennas are positioned in fixed positions to formmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) virtual sectors that are capableof being selected to communicate using one or moremultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) physical sectors associated withthe multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) virtual sectors; said multiplefirst directional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability include all of thefirst directional antennas of the first transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability include all of thesecond directional antennas of the second transmission point with themultiple-input-multiple-output MIMO) capability; or said firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless deviceincludes at least one of a mobile device, a client, a computer, or ahand-held device.
 16. A system, comprising: a single wireless stationconfigured to operate in a packet-switched cellular network, the singlewireless station including: a first portion with amultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, the first portionhaving: a plurality of first directional antennas, at least one firstradio in communication with the first directional antennas, and firstcircuitry in communication with the at least one first radio; a secondportion with a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, thesecond portion having: a plurality of second directional antennas, atleast one second radio in communication with the second directionalantennas, and second circuitry in communication with the at least onesecond radio; and third circuitry in communication with the firstcircuitry of the first portion with the multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO) capability and the second circuitry of the second portion withthe multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; said singlewireless station configured such that the first portion with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability cooperates with thesecond portion with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capabilityto support a first transmission to a firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,for improving the first transmission to address interference, by: inresponse to at least one first signal sent by the single wirelessstation, receiving first information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on an interference-based measurement performed by thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice; in response to at least one second signal sent by the singlewireless station, receiving second information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on another interference-based measurement performed by thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice; performing beamforming to support the first transmissionutilizing at least one of: multiple of the first directional antennas ofthe first portion with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)capability, or multiple of the second directional antennas of the secondportion with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, basedon the first information and the second information; and transmittingdata during the first transmission to the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,utilizing the beamforming with at least one of: the multiple firstdirectional antennas of the first portion with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second portion with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 17. The system ofclaim 16, wherein the system is configured such that a channel betweenthe first portion and the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device differs from another channelbetween the second portion and the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device in terms of at least one channelcharacteristic that includes at least one of: a channel characteristicthat is throughput-related, a channel characteristic that issignal-to-noise ratio-related, a channel characteristic that is signalstrength-related, or a channel characteristic that is multipathsignal-related.
 18. A system, comprising: a packet-switched cellularnetwork including a plurality of wireless stations including aparticular wireless station including: a first group with amultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, the first grouphaving: a plurality of first directional antennas, at least one firstradio in communication with the first directional antennas, and firstcircuitry in communication with the at least one first radio; a secondgroup with a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, thesecond group having: a plurality of second directional antennas, atleast one second radio in communication with the second directionalantennas, and second circuitry in communication with the at least onesecond radio; and third circuitry in communication with the firstcircuitry of the first group with the multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO) capability and the second circuitry of the second group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability; said particularwireless station configured such that the first group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability cooperates with thesecond group with the multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capabilityto support a first transmission to a firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless device,for improving the first transmission by addressing interference, by:receiving first information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on an interference-based measurement performed by thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice, and the second group with the multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO) capability; receiving second information from the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicethat is based on another interference-based measurement performed by thefirst multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wirelessdevice; coordinating utilization of at least one of multiple of thefirst directional antennas of the first group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or multiple of thesecond directional antennas of the second group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, based on the firstinformation and the second information; and transmitting data with thefirst transmission to the first multiple-input multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device, utilizing at least one of: themultiple first directional antennas of the first group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability, or the multiple seconddirectional antennas of the second group with themultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) capability.
 19. The system ofclaim 18, wherein the system is configured such that a channel betweenthe first group and the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device differs from another channelbetween the second group and the first multiple-input-multiple-output(MIMO)-capable portable wireless device in terms of at least one channelcharacteristic that includes at least one of: a channel characteristicthat is throughput-related, a channel characteristic that issignal-to-noise ratio-related, a channel characteristic that is signalstrength-related, or a channel characteristic that is multipathsignal-related.
 20. The system of claim 18, wherein the system isconfigured such that a channel between the first group and the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicediffers from another channel between the second group and the firstmultiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO)-capable portable wireless devicein terms of at least two channel characteristics that include at leasttwo of: a channel characteristic that is throughput-related, a channelcharacteristic that is signal-to-noise ratio-related, a channelcharacteristic that is signal strength-related, or a channelcharacteristic that is multipath signal-related.